Adelaide's Rory Sloane and Port Adelaide's Ollie Wines with fans at the 2023 fixture announcement at Adelaide Oval on December 5, 2022. Picture: AFL Photos

The AFL is pleased to announce Round Five of the 2023 Toyota AFL Premiership Season fixture as we all 'Gather Round for A Festival of Footy' in South Australia.

Nine matches, four days, three venues and all 18 clubs descend on South Australia for a round of footy like never before.

Running from Thursday April 13 through to Sunday April 16, the additional round of matches coincides with school holidays in many parts of Australia.

>>SCROLL DOWN FOR THE FULL ROUND 5 FIXTURE

Adelaide Oval will host six matches – Thursday night, Friday night, a Saturday double header and a Sunday double header, while Norwood Oval, home of the reigning SANFL premiers the 'Redlegs' will host two matches – Friday twilight and Sunday afternoon and Adelaide Hills (Summit Sports and Recreation Park, Mount Barker), home of 'Hills footy' will host a Saturday afternoon match.

In a win for members and football fans everywhere, all competing club members will get free entry to their club's match, while non-competing members and general public tickets are capped at a single price of $30 for adults, $20 concession (15-18 years old) and kids (under 15) are FREE at all matches.

Tickets go on sale Monday December 12 via Ticketek.

Exclusive Member redemption period 12:00pm – 4:00pm CDST (ADL) / 12:30pm – 4:30pm EDST
General Public On-sale 5:00pm CDST (ADL) / 5:30pm EDST

14:42

Footy Feed: SA wins rights to host all 18 teams in bonanza round

All 18 teams to play Round Five in South Australia in 2023

Tickets are not tiered or classified, so prices are capped for all matches in any seat in the venue and for all matches at the Adelaide Oval multi-day discounted passes will be available.

The hometown Adelaide Crows will play Carlton on Thursday night to open the round at Adelaide Oval, then on Friday, Norwood Oval hosts 'post-work' twilight match between Fremantle and Gold Coast SUNS, followed by Richmond vs Sydney Swans under the Friday night lights of Adelaide Oval.

Saturday sees the early afternoon start in the Adelaide Hills wine region, as Brisbane Lions and North Melbourne meet at Summit Sports and Recreation Park, Mount Barker, then an Adelaide Oval double header features with Essendon vs Melbourne into the Saturday night match up of hometown Port Adelaide vs Western Bulldogs.

To bring home the four-day festival on Sunday, Adelaide Oval once again hosts a double header, with reigning AFL Premiers Geelong Cats facing off against West Coast Eagles, followed by a twilight St Kilda vs Collingwood clash. Hawthorn and GWS GIANTS will play at the home of the 'Redlegs', Norwood Oval in the middle of the afternoon.

AFL EGM Clubs, Broadcast and Fixturing Travis Auld said the Round Five fixture is the perfect mix for what should a huge festival of footy in South Australia.

"Gather Round and the festival of footy in South Australia is an unbelievable opportunity for our competition and our clubs, our players and coaches are excited to come together and put on a great show for everyone," Mr Auld said.

"South Australians love their footy, and with no SANFL or metropolitan community matches that weekend, we are hoping they also come and experience what will be a great four days of celebration, fun and a true festival of footy.

"From a fixturing point of view adding an extra round adds a layer of complexity to the clubs' matchups across the season and taking into consideration the days break from the week before and subsequent days break for Round 6, however we think we have the right mix with big games everywhere you look.

"The broadcasting of nine matches across three venues – including regional ones – featuring double headers in one city is something that has never been done before and we have worked closely with our broadcast partners to build a schedule that can not only work for crowds, but also viewers at home who can't travel to South Australia."

Port Adelaide and Western Bulldogs fans at Adelaide Oval on December 5, 2022. Picture: AFL Photos

Mr Auld said the AFL had priced the games with affordability and access front of mind.

"We have been really conscious to ensure the matches are not only accessible, but most importantly affordable for fans. It's an extra round, so a bonus match for members to be able to watch their team, and by pricing it affordably it hopefully helps entice fans from all over the country to make a trip of it and visit the state and enjoy all the activities in and around the state."

Mr Auld also thanked the SA Government for their ongoing support.

"On behalf of the AFL, I would like to thank Premier Malinauskas, along with everyone at the South Australian Government and all footy fans across the state – your passion for this project has been infectious and we look forward to putting on a great show for you all come April."

SA Premier Peter Malinauskas said: "Excitement is already building here in South Australia for what will be the biggest round of footy in our state's history.

"With the release of the fixture, fans can start booking their tickets, visitors can begin booking their accommodation and planning their trip to South Australia.

"The economic benefit to our tourism and hospitality sectors is going to be exceptional.

"We're going to see double headers at Adelaide Oval and big matches at The Parade and Adelaide Hills. This really will be a festival of footy.

"With affordable ticket prices on offer, we want to ensure as many people as possible can experience this incredible event for themselves."

Adelaide and Carlton fans at the Adelaide Oval on December 5, 2022. Picture: AFL Photos

AFL airline partner Virgin Australia will have over 71,000 seats, or more than 215 return flights operating from April 12-18, 2023, to help get interstate fans to 'Gather Round'. 13,000 seats have been added specially for Round 5, which will gradually go on sale today (Friday), with flights between Melbourne and Adelaide alone almost doubling.

Flights between Melbourne and Adelaide on Friday 14 April 2023 are on sale now from as low as $99 Economy one-way.

https://www.virginaustralia.com/en-au/flights-to-adelaide

Additional Adelaide flights between April 12-18, 2023, will be available from the following ports: Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Gold Coast, Cairns, Canberra, Launceston, Hobart, Alice Springs and Darwin.

Round 5

Thursday, April 13

Adelaide v Carlton at Adelaide Oval, 7.10pm ACST (SEVEN)

Friday, April 14

Fremantle v Gold Coast at Norwood Oval, 4.40pm ACST (FOX)
Richmond v Sydney at Adelaide Oval, 7.40pm ACST (SEVEN)

Saturday, April 15

Brisbane v North Melbourne at Adelaide Hills, 12.40pm ACST (FOX)
Essendon v Melbourne (D) at Adelaide Oval, 3.40pm ACST (FOX)
Port Adelaide v Western Bulldogs (D) at Adelaide Oval, 7.20pm ACST (SEVEN)

Sunday, April 16

Geelong v West Coast (D) at Adelaide Oval, 12.40pm ACST (FOX)
Greater Western Sydney v Hawthorn at Norwood Oval, 2.50pm ACST (SEVEN)
Collingwood v St Kilda (D) at Adelaide Oval, 4.20pm ACST (FOX)

Note: (D) is double header match at Adelaide Oval.

No team will officially be the 'home' team during this round. Match ups are listed in alphabetical order.

Club match day colours will be worked out in consultation with clubs next year.

As this match is a bonus game for members, no seasonal membership entitlements or seat locations will apply for Club members. All club members are required to redeem their free ticket for their Club's match via the redemption process outlined above.

A range of premium hospitality options will be available across all venues via the AFL Event Office, with packages to be released week commencing Monday 12 December.

The 2023 Toyota AFL Premiership Season fixture for the first 15 Rounds, and then rounds, match ups and venues for the remaining home and away matches will be released later this week.